


Crumbling

by unwindmyself



Series: curious shapes shift in the dark [105]
Category: True Blood
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anger, Anxiety, F/F, F/M, Femslash, Fix-It, Gen, Light Dom/sub, Plans, agency and choices!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-10
Updated: 2015-10-10
Packaged: 2018-04-25 16:55:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4968862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unwindmyself/pseuds/unwindmyself
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Going to ground in the wake of their new opponent's appearance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Crumbling

**Author's Note:**

> Part two, "Death Defying Acts."

“Sleepover,” Tara deadpans.  “Whoo.”

“Good thing y’all already have all those beds for the shelter,” Willa offers, voice strained with attempted optimism.

“Yeah,” Jessica sighs.  “Not exactly what I had in mind for breakin’ ‘em in, but I guess that’s just too fuckin’ bad.”

“Hey,” Willa says softly, “it’s okay.  We’re doin’ the best we can.”

“This turn of events doesn’t have anything to do with you,” Tara tells the both of them.  “It’s just shit happens like it always does in Bon Temps.”

“I just kinda hoped tonight would be shit-free,” Jessica grumbles.

Nicole knocks on the parlor door and lets herself in.  “Coast is definitely clear,” she says.  “Sun’s up, Jason did a loop just now to look for if he, the Warlow guy, had, like, human helpers.”

“Cool,” says Willa.  “Thank you.  You guys make sure to get some rest too, okay?”

 

* * *

 

“Told you it was Sookie,” Pam quips once they’re behind closed doors.

“Oh, shut the fuck up,” Tara snaps, pulling her dress off in a rush.  “This is no fuckin’ time to go casually flinging blame around.  Especially at Sookie, who you never cease to bitch at despite her best efforts to be decent to you.”

“Excuse me,” Pam growls.  “But you have to admit that trouble follows your erstwhile bestie around a whole fuckin’ lot of the time.”

“Trouble follows fuckin’ all of us around,” Tara retorts. “And yeah, maybe she doesn’t always help herself with the company she keeps, but some bullshit marriage pact her goddamn great-grandfather or whoever signed years ago has nothin’ to do with her.”

Pam, also down to her lingerie by now, slips behind Tara.  “Chill out, baby,” she croons, and she slips that silk scarf up toward Tara’s eyes.

“This can’t be fixed with fuckin’ kinky sex,” Tara snaps, swatting at Pam’s hand.

“What needs fixed?” Pam murmurs.

“Well, that can be done in this room here, your shitty attitude,” Tara replies, but she’s softer, more gentle than before.

“Yeah, I know,” Pam says, and she brings the scarf up once again.  This time, Tara allows it, and Pam ties it off, careful but firm.

“You’re still an asshole,” Tara whispers.

“But I’m your asshole,” Pam coos.

“That doesn’t sounds cute at all,” Tara says.  

“Good thing I myself make up for it,” Pam purrs.

 

* * *

 

“Well, fuckin’ shit,” Willa announces quietly when she gets back to the room that she and the Bellefleur girls are sharing.  Adilyn and Danika and Charlaine are already asleep, but Braelyn has been waiting up because she’s pretty sure that’s the good girlfriend thing to do.

“Hey,” Braelyn whispers, waving Willa over to the bed that’s been appointed to them.  “Hey, c’mere.”

Willa changes into her nightie (it’s a cute lacy girly one, picked out specifically for what she thought was going to be a night of girlfriend time and making out) and joins Braelyn, frowning.  “That asshole knew what you were,” she sighs.  “Knew what you and Sookie and your sisters and… you’re in danger.”

“So we’ll fuckin’ deal,” Braelyn says almost blithely.  “We’re clever, and we know how to kick ass.”

“He’s so much older than all of us, though,” Willa sighs.  “And stronger.  And we don’t even know…”

“Hey,” Braelyn repeats.  “Hey, lay down with me.”  She waits for Willa to do this and grabs her around the waist.  “Shut your eyes, okay?”

“Okay,” Willa says.

“Just listen to my heart,” Braelyn says.  “You can’t do deep breathin’ so just listen to mine.”

“Okay,” Willa says.

“Now I don’t want you worrying any more tonight,” Braelyn says.  “It’s gonna be all right.  Somehow it’s gonna be all right.”

“But what if it’s not?” Willa asks.

Gently, Braelyn’s hand comes up to cover Willa’s mouth.  “No more talkin’ either,” she says.  “Just try to stay calm and we’ll figure it out.”

 

* * *

 

Nora is pacing when Jessica finally gets back up to her room, practically wringing her hands.  

“Nora?” Jessica asks softly, worried.

“Fuck,” Nora mutters, not seeming to have heard Jessica.  “It would have been one thing if the lost prince of vampire hell showed up months ago, he and Billith could have just offed each other without putting any of us at risk.”

“Because progeny, right,” Jessica says, and she has to admit that it doesn’t sound like the worst option to her.

Nora nods in agreement.  “But now it’s just - he’s just -”  Her voice gets small all of a sudden and she goes to sit on the bed, looking forlorn.  “Everything was going so well.”

She looks ashamed of even thinking it when there are more pressing concerns that are much less directly related to her.

“We’ll figure this out, _syster_ ,” Eric murmurs.  He moves behind her, pulls her dress over her head carefully.  “We can’t fight the man in the daytime.  We can’t fix it quite yet.”

Nora makes a face.  “But how?  He’s so…”

Eric shakes his head, takes up the ribbons from earlier (still strewn across the bed).  “And we’re so, too,” he declares, and he binds her ankles.  “Of any bunch of vampires in the world, I’d say we’re the most qualified to fight the old and powerful but arrogant and foolhardy progeny of an evil god.”

Jessica blinks, watching this, listening to it, shocked by how soft he got all at once, but then she snaps out of it.  She undresses swiftly, she joins them on the bed.  Off Eric’s nod, she knots ribbon around Nora’s wrists, not as elegantly as it had been done before but decently for a newbie.  “We’ll keep Sookie safe.  All of us are going to stay safe,” she adds.

“We have no idea of the specifics,” Nora frets.  “We’re flying headfirst without…”

Instinctively, Jessica reaches for the makeshift ribbon gag and holds it up, the question in her eyes.

Nora’s own eyes drop, but when she collects herself and looks up once more it’s with complete trust, complete affectionate trust that they’re going to take care of her and maybe it will even be as all right as they’re trying to say.  Her jaw drops and she blinks innocently at Jessica; Eric lifts her hair and takes hold of the ribbons to tie them once the knot is in place.

“We can’t figure out how to fight anyone without any sleep,” Eric says into his sister’s ear, and then he leans to drop a kiss on her shoulder.  “He’ll be gone to ground, we’ll go to ground, and at sundown we’ll reconvene and sort this all out.”

“Promise,” Jessica adds, and all three of them ease back down on the bed, Jessica facing Nora and Eric spooning Nora from behind.  It’s not perfect, but they’re trying.

 

* * *

 

“Jason,” Sookie says, sitting up in bed when she hears him enter.

“Hey, Sook.”

“I think we need to go see the fairies,” she sighs.  “The full-blooded ones.”


End file.
